WASHINGTON, DC – Prominent U.S.-India relations expert Ashley J. Tellis, a former adviser on the National Security Council under President George W. Bush, has been released from custody and placed under home detention in Vienna, Virginia. Tellis, 64, is charged with the unlawful retention of national defense information.

Authorities allege that Tellis improperly kept more than 1,000 pages of classified documents at his residence. The documents reportedly included material marked “top secret” and “secret,” covering sensitive topics such as U.S. military aircraft capabilities.

The affidavit also details meetings Tellis allegedly held with Chinese government officials at restaurants in Northern Virginia.

Tellis’s attorneys, Deborah Curtis and John Nassikas of Arnold & Porter, issued a statement defending their client. “Ashley J. Tellis is a widely respected scholar and senior policy advisor. We will vigorously contest the allegations brought against him, specifically any insinuation of his operating on behalf of a foreign adversary,” the statement read.

Tellis is expected to contest the charges vigorously at upcoming hearings, maintaining that all allegations, including suggestions of acting on behalf of a foreign adversary, are unfounded.

Tellis is a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, where he holds the Tata Chair for Strategic Affairs, but has been placed on administrative leave following his arrest.

If convicted, Tellis faces a potential sentence of up to 10 years in prison and fines of up to $250,000.

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